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Rabid Raccoons? Nope ... Police Say They're Just Drunk Raccoons

Dealing with drunk, disorderly and sometimes wild creatures of the night is nothing new for police, but in this case, authorities in a West Virginia town weren't handling a pedestrian disturbance.

Residents in Milton had been calling police to report erratic raccoons that they believed to be rabid. But after officers made their first apprehension of one of the suspect masked bandits on Monday, an investigation showed they weren't rabid.

They were simply intoxicated.

"Turns out they appear to be drunk on crabapples," the Milton Police Department wrote on Facebook.

One raccoon was caught with the help of neighborhood residents, while an officer had an assist from the city street department on a second "arrest."

No charges were filed and both raccoons — one of which officers named "Dallas" — were later released.

While this was a false alarm, police warned residents they're not necessarily out of the woods on the rabies scare.

"If you see a staggering and disoriented raccoon please do not approach it," the police said. "It could be sick so call us and we’ll take care of it."

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